Mediterranean Diet Friendly Paleo Marinara Sauce
Few sauces are as satisfying to make from scratch as a slow-simmered marinara, and this one leans hard into the kind of simple, quality-ingredient cooking that defines Mediterranean-style eating at its best. Extra-virgin olive oil forms the flavor foundation, coaxing thinly sliced garlic until it's fragrant and just kissed with gold before the tomatoes ever hit the pan. San Marzano tomatoes bring a natural sweetness and depth that no jarred shortcut can quite replicate, and the slow 25-minute simmer transforms that bright, acidic red into a rich, brick-hued sauce with real body. Dried oregano and a handful of torn fresh basil finish things off in the most classic way possible — no fillers, no added sugars, nothing that doesn't belong. The optional red pepper flakes let you dial the heat up or down depending on what you're serving it with. It's the kind of sauce that works over zucchini noodles, spooned onto roasted vegetables, or used as a dipping base — endlessly versatile and genuinely wholesome from the first stir to the last taste.
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Learn more →Ingredients
4 servings
- 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- ½ tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
- 1 can (28 oz) crushed san marzano tomatoes
- ½ tsp salt, plus more to taste
- ¼ tsp black pepper
- ¼ tsp dried oregano
- 8 fresh basil leaves, torn
Instructions
- 1
Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium-low heat until it shimmers. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes, if using, and cook, stirring frequently, until the garlic is fragrant and just beginning to turn golden at the edges, about 2–3 minutes. Watch closely — garlic can brown quickly and turn bitter.
- 2
Pour in the crushed tomatoes and stir to combine. Add the salt, black pepper, and dried oregano.
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